How to Use Watercolor Pencils: A Complete Guide​

Watercolor pencils appear ordinary, yet hide magic: delicate when dry, transforming into watercolors with water. This guide reveals how to use watercolor pencils and unlocks their unique charm from scratch.

What are watercolor pencils?

Watercolor pencils have a similar appearance to ordinary colored lead, with a pen core containing water-soluble pigments.

They can draw delicate lines when dry, and blend watercolor gradients when wet, achieving both dry and wet use.

Basic usage of watercolor pencils

Although both are watercolor pencils, dry and wet painting can produce completely different artistic effects!

Whether it is a clean line or a hazy gradient, it will immediately help you unlock new ways of creation.

1.Preparation

• Watercolor pencils: 12-24 colors are recommended for beginners, and can be expanded to 36 colors or more for advanced users.
• Paper: It is recommended to choose paper weighing over 200 grams, with professional watercolor paper weighing over 300 grams being the best choice.
• Brushes: smudge brush (for large areas of color), detail brush (for small areas of touch-up).
• Auxiliary tools: water, eraser, color palette.

2.Dry painting

Features: No water is added, retains the delicate brushstrokes of pencil, suitable for detail depiction and sketching.

Step 1: Use a 2H or HB watercolor pencil to gently outline the outline of the picture and the structure of the object. The lines do not need to be too complicated.

Step 2: According to the inherent color of the object, choose the corresponding watercolor pencil for flat painting. Keep even strength and draw lines in the same direction or paint gently.

Step 3: On the basis of the base color, overlay deeper or brighter colors to create a sense of depth and detail.

Step 4: Observe the overall effect of the picture, checking the color coordination, object proportions and light and dark relationships.

3.Wet painting

Features: Add water to dissolve the pigment to create a watercolor-like smudge effect, suitable for soft gradients and backgrounds.

Step 1:  Use HB or 2H watercolor pencils of moderate hardness to outline the outline of the picture and the shape of objects with light strokes.

Step 2:  According to the concept of the picture, choose the appropriate color of watercolor pencils for dry brush coloring.

This step ensures that the pigment is attached in sufficient quantity to provide enough color for subsequent blending.

Step 3: Take a clean watercolor brush, dip it in a small amount of water, and start blending from the edge of the line.

If you need to create color layers, you can blend light colors first, and then add dark colors when they are half dry.

Step 4:  When the paper is semi-dry, use dry watercolor pencils to add details or use a wet smudge pen to locally adjust the smudge effect.

Whether it’s the hazy style of wet painting or the three-dimensional style of dry painting, the choice of watercolor pencil is always the foundation for the implementation of the technique.

As a watercolor pencil manufacturer specialized in research and development, only by polishing every tip can creators truly unleash their imagination. If you have more needs for watercolor pencils, please feel free to explore the craftsmanship details of our full range of products.

Tips for using watercolor pencils

After mastering the basic techniques, do you want to take your watercolor pencil creation to the next level?

These advanced usages can help you break through the bottleneck, unlock advanced techniques of color overlay and texture shaping, and make the picture stunning.

1.Combination of watercolor pencils and oil pastels

2.Superposition of watercolor pencils and watercolor paints

3.Combination of Watercolor pencils and salt

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: After multiple layers of color overlay, the picture color becomes dark and impure?

Control the number of layers, and let each layer dry before adding it. Use a color palette to mix colors instead of mixing directly on paper.

Q: The color is uneven, with patches of light and dark?

Adjust the strength of the brush, use a tissue or cotton swab to soften the color block, and blend evenly.

Q: The paper becomes warped/cockled after large-area wet washes？

Choose heavy-weight watercolor paper and mount it in advance; smudge in different areas multiple times to avoid too much water at one time.

Q: The paper surface fibers are damaged and the paper becomes fuzzy, which affects the subsequent coloring?

Choose dense paper, sharpen pencils for detailed drawing, and use erasers less frequently.

Q: Lines and details fade after washing？

First use dry painting to depict details, then blend locally; use a waterproof liner pen to outline the contours.